The world globes are round model representing the spheroid body of earth or the world. Often used literally as synonymous with the “earth” or “world,” the word – globe – has come from the Latin word “globus” that means round mass or sphere. The world globes are sphere representing the maps of world.
The oldest known globe was made around 150 BC by the scholar Crates of Mallus in modern day Turkey. Featured in the Naples Museum, Naples, Italy, the ancient celestial globe called the Farnese Atlas is believed to be built in 150 AD as part of a sculpture. The first old globe was constructed in the Muslim world during the middle Ages. Martin Behaim in Nürnberg, Germany constructed the oldest existing terrestrial globe in 1492.
The world globes are just geographical representation of the world, and have negligible distortion. The world globes are made using a map projection with an inherent degree of distortion; the projection may either enforce angle preservation or area preservation. Roughly 1:40 million is a typical scale for the world globes. Usually mounted at an angle on bearings, the world globes are imprinted with parallels and meridians. Most of the modern world globes are covered with by printed paper maps of the world. The representations of world globes using 3D software are often called virtual globes.
The sizes of world globes depend on the sizes of spheres; there can be different sizes of world globes ranging from table tennis ball to gigantic world globes, such as Unisphere and Eartha. Located in Flushing Meadows Park in the Borough of Queens, New York City, the Unisphere of 120 feet in diameter is the largest of world globes. Located within the headquarters of the DeLorme mapping corporation in Yarmouth, Maine, Eartha with 41 feet in diameter is the largest of the rotating and revolving world globes. Mapparium at Christian Science complex in Boston, Babson globe in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and the Giant Globe in the lobby of The News Building in New York City are some more giant world globes in the world.
The world globes help understanding the natural phenomenon of Earth rotation, change of day and night, and change of seasons. The world globes are great help to travelers, navigators, aeronauts, geographers, and students. The world globes can be purchased online. There are a number of sites selling the finest world globes online.